Bqilek-feed regulation



J. H. MURRAY.

BOILER FEED REGULATION.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 12| 192].

1,435,546; Patented Nov. 14, 1922.

Z 2 SHEETS-SEEN I.

WITNESSES INVENTOR W W/mome s J. H. MURRAY.

BOILER FEED REGULATION.

APPLICATION FILED JULY12.1921.

1 ,43 5 ,546 Patented NW. 14, 1922.

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III/I147] I A llamey:

Patented Nov, l4, 1922.

'uivirsn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES H. MURRAY, OF WATERVILLE, Ji/L'AINE.

BOILER-FEED Application filed July 12,

To all whom it may COW/067%, 4

Be it known that 1, James H. MURRAY, a citizen. oi? the United States, and a resident of, l l 'aterville, in the county of lilennebec and State of Maine, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Boiler- Feed Regulation; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same,

This invention relates to improvements in boiler teed regulation,one object ot the invention being to provide simple and efficient means whereby the water level shall be maintained substantially constant, and to improve the eiiiciency of the plant in various respects as hereinafter explained.

With this and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts as hereinafter set forth and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings; Figure 1 is a side elevation of a boiler equipment showing an embodiment of my improvements; Figure 2 is an end elevation of 0 battery of two boilers showing the regulating system connected therewith; Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the regulator; Figure A is a sectional view of the valve part-s open, and Figures 5, 6, 7 8 and 9 are detail views.

1 represents a boiler mounted in a suitable setting of masonry 2. A pump for supplying water to the boiler is indicated at 3 and connected with the boiler below the normal water lever therein, by means by pipe 1, which latter may be provided with a valve 5. Water is supplied to the pump from a reservoir 6 by means of a valved pipe 7. This reservoir serves as an accumulator for water of condensation From the piping system, and such water is conducted to the reservoir by means of a pipe 8, having a plurality 01. branches 9 connected in any suitable manner (not shown) with the steam pipes of the system. Should the water of condensation accumulate more rapidly in the tank 6 than it is utilized 111 supplying the boiler, the excess may escape through an overflow outlet 10 located near the top of the reservoir. Water from some other convenient source may be supplied to the reservoir when the water of condense REGULATION.

1921. Serial No. 484,126.

tion will not suiiice in quantity to keep the boiler properly supplied, by means of a pipe 11 from any suitable source of water supply, said pipe communicating with the upper portion of the reservoir and the dis charge of water from this pipe into the reservoir is controlled automatically, by a float-operated valve indicated at 12. Should the water level in the reservoir descend abnormally, the valve 12 will automatically open the supply pipe 11 and when the water level again reaches the normal height, the valve 12 will be automatically closed, as will be clearly understood.

To provide simple and efiicient means which shall be controlled automatically to supply water to the boiler in such quantity and at such time as may be necessary to maintain a substantially constant water level,the appliances now to be explained may be employed:

A valved steam pipelt is connected at one end with the boiler at a suitable point, preferably by means of a Tnoupling 15 just below the safety valve 16,-the other end of this pipe being connected, through the medium of a valved pipe 17, with the steam supply inlet 18 at the upper portion of a regulator tank 19. This tank is supported on suitable columns 20 at such height that its top shall be above the desired water level in the boiler.

A pipe 21 communicates at one end with the upper end of the regulator tank, (through the medium of a cap 22 thereon) and at its other end, this pipe communicates with the motor 3 of the pump 3. A pipe 23 communicates at one end with the pipe 14 and at the other end with the pipe 21 and forms a by-pass around the regulator tank. A valve 24: is located in the by-pass pipe 23 and valves 25, 26 are located in the pipe 21 between the bypass pipe and the regulator and between the bypass pipe and the pump motor, respectively. By this arrangement oil"? valved piping, steam may be led directly from the boiler to the pump motor or through the regulator to said motor.

In order that water may be conveyed from the boiler and introduced into the regulator tank 19, a pipe 27 is connected with the bottom of the boiler at the rear end thereof and leads to a union 28 which constitutes the casing of a three-way valve 29.

This union or valve casing 23 is connected by a pipe 30 (provided with a valve 31) with upper and lower pipes 32-33 and a blow-01f pipe is also connected with the casing it may be here stated that the connections of the several pipes with the union or casing 28 are made tapering so that they will exactly coincide with the apertures of the plug valve thus avoiding friction and eddying in the valve structure when the valve is con1pl tely opened.

The lower pipe above mentioned is connected, through the medium of an adjustable coupling 35, with the regulator tank 19, near the bottom of the latter. The upper pipe 32 is connected with a coupling 36 and the latter is connected, by means of a pipe 37 containing an adjustable coupling 38, with the regulator tank 19 at a higher level than the connection of the lower pipe 33 therewith, but below the normal water level. The coupling 36 re ceives the lower end of a surge chamber 39 which communicates therewith, and the upper end of this chamber communicates, through the medium of a small pipe 410 with the upper portion of the regulator tank 19,-said surge chamber being so located that its lower end will be below the water level of the boilers and its upper end some distance above such level. By connecting the upper end of the surge chamber with the live steam space of the regulator tank, the pressure will be balanced.

The adjustable couplings and 38 are identical in construction, the details of which" are shown in the enlarged sectional view, Figure 7. Each of these couplings comprises a sleeve l1 provided interiorly with an annular shoulder 42, and against this shoulder, a perforated disk 43 rests. The end of the pipe section screwed into the end of the sleeve farthest removed from the annular shoulder is made plain or turned to a loose fit so that it may reach the disk and hold it in place against the annular shoulder while the inner end of the other pipe section may abut against the shoulder as indicated in Figure 7. The disks 4-3 serve to prevent surge in the boilers from reaching the water in the receiver or regulator tank, and are removable so that they may be adjusted to the boiler plant, new ones being inserted with different sized holes to accommodate the required. circulation. This will p event unsteadiness in the operation of the piston valve (hereinafter described) in the regulator tank which n'iight otherwise be caused by the surge.

By connecting the water pipe 27 with the boiler through the medium of the upper and lower pipes 32 and 33 communicating with the regulator tank at different levels, a constant gravity circulation will be obtained between the boiler and the regulator tank.

The provision of the two pipes 39r'33 the result that the cooler water :in the bottom of the tank will flow out through the lower pipe and force the water in the upper pipe into the tank. This will avoid water hammer caused by hot water from the boiler meeting the cooler water in a single pipe. The two pipes will maintain the same temperature in the boilers, pipes and tank.

The specific valve mechanism which may be employed in the regulator tank for automatically controlling the operation of the pump to supply water to the boiler in suit-3.

cient and at proper times to maintain a constant water level, is shown in Figures 3, 4- and 5 and may be described as follows:

The upper head of the tank 19 is made with a suitable opening to receive a nozzle 44 which depends an appreciable distance downwardly within the tank. The upper end of this nozzle is made with a flange 45 which rests upon a collar 46 secured. to the upper head of the tank, and upon this flange, the cap 22 is seated and secured in place by means of bolts 47 passing through said cap and flange and entering the collar 46. The upper portion of the bore of the nozzle 14lis somewhat enlarged, and the nozzle is provided within said enlarged portion with a tubular member 4-8 in line with and constituting an upward extension of the lower portion of the bore of the nozzle. The tubular extension 48 is spaced from the wall of the enlarged bore of the nozzle so as to form an annular chamber 19, and the upper end of said tubular extension is closed by a cap 50. The annular chamber 49 communicates with the interior of the nozzle through 7 ports 51 and to open and close these ports, a piston valve 52 is provided within the nozzle. The piston valve is provided with a peripheral groove 53 which communicates with the interior of the valve'through ports 54 to admit live steam to said groove and serve as a cushion and to reduce friction and wear between the valve and the inner wall of the nozzle. The piston valve is provided at its upper end with a spider 55 to which the upper end of a stem 56 is adjustably secured. The lower end of the stem 56 is connected by means of a universal coupling 56 with a rod 57 projecting upwardly from a float 58. By constructing the valved nozzle and locating the same within the tank as above described, both the nozzle and the sliding valve will. be equally exposed to live steam, with the result that the ezqiansion of the sliding part of the valve will be the same as the expansion of its seat.

The float 58 is provided with a depending rod or stem 59 which may be tubular at its lower portion to receive a guide pin 60 secured'to and projecting upwardly from the bottom of the regulator tank 19. Two disks (Sb-G2 are mounted on-the rod or stem 59 below the circulation ports 35 and 37" and are provided with holes 63-64 respectively, -said disks being somewhat less in diametcr than the internal diameter of the tank and are so mounted that one of them may be turned to enlarge or decrease the size of the openings formed by the holes in said disks. The disks will serve to prevent the surge in water from the boiler from imparting vertical motion to the valve, and thus the valve will be prevented from sliding up and down past the ports and admitting I steam to the pump when the water is at its adjusted level.

The regulator tank may be provided with a glass gage 61 to indicate the level of the water therein.

It is apparent that when the level of the water in the boiler descends, the level of the water in the tank, 19, will also descend, thus causing the valve 52 to descend and uncover the parts 51. Steam will thus be permitted to pass from the interior of the tank up through the piston valve and from the space within the extension 48 to the annular chamber a9 and then out through the pipe 21 to the motor of the pump, thus causing the operation of the latter to supply water to the boiler, as previously explained. hen the normal water level in the boiler shall have been established, the piston valve will rise and thus close the steam supply to the pump motor.

Slight changes might be made in the de tails of construction of my invention without departing from the spirit thereof or limiting its scope and hence I do not wish to restrict myself to the precise details herein set forth.

Having fully described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, is

1. The combination with a boiler, a feed pump, a regulating device, pipe connections between the boiler and regulating device and between the latter and the feed pump, and a valve controlled by the water level in the regulating device to control the passage of steam to the pump, of feed water connections between the boiler and the regulating device and comprising two pipes spaced apart vertically and both commljmirating with the regulating device below the normal water level of the boiler.

2, The combination of a boiler, a feed pump, a regulating device adapted to con tain. water in constant ratio to the amount in the boiler, a valve controlled by the water level in the regulating device to admit steam to the pump, water feed connections between the regulating device and the boiler and comprising vertically spaced pipes both communicating with the regulating device below the normal water level of the boiler, a three-way valve interposed between said pipes and the boiler, and a drain pipe for the boiler communicating with the three-way valve.

3. The combination of a boiler, a feed pump, a regulating device adapted to contain water in constant ratio to the amount of water in the boiler, a valve controlled by the water level in the regulating device, Water connections between the regulating device and the boiler, steam connections between the boiler and the regulating device below the valve therein, steam connections between the regulating device above the valve therein and the feed pump, a steam by-pass pipe connection between the boiler and the pump and shunting the regulating device, and valves in said. pipe connections.

4-. The combination of a boiler, a regulator tank, a valve therefor, water connections between the boiler and said tank, steam connections between boiler and the tank at one side of the valve therein, steam connections between said tank at the other side of said valve and the feed pump, a water reservoir communicating with the feed pump, condensation pipes leading to said reservoir, a water supply pipe communicating with the upper portion of said reservoir, and a float valve controlling the inflow of water tln ou gh said supply pipe.

o. The combination w1th a boiler feed pump, a regulator tank, a valve therefor, steam connections between the boiler and said tank steam connections between said tank and the feed pump, water connections between the boiler and said regulator tank, a surge chamber communicating with said water connections and extending above the normal water level of the boiler, and a steam connection between the upper portion of the surge chamber and the upper portion of the regulator tank.

6. The combination of a boiler, a feed pump, a regulator tank, a valve therefor, steam pipes connected with said tank at respective sides of the valve and connected respectively with the boiler and the feed pump, water pipe connections between the boiler and the regulator tank, said water pipe connections embodying a coupling having a shoulder projecting thereinto and a perforated disk rcmovably disposed within said coupling and seated against one side of said shoulder, one of the pipes abutting against the other side of said shoulder.

7. The combination of a boiler, a feed pump, a regulator tank, a valve for said tank, steam pipes connected with the regulator tank at respective sides of the valve and connected respectively with the boiler and feed pump, Water pipe connections between the boiler and regulator tank, a surge chamber communicating with said water pipe connections, a removable perforated disk in said water pipe connections between the surge chamber and regulator tank, and. a steam pipe connectingthe upper portion of the surge chamber with the upper portion oi. the regulator tank.

S. A regulating; device comprising a tank having a steam inlet and a water inlet, a nozzle depending into the upper portion of the tank and. having an annular chamber in its upper portion, a steam outlet for said chamber, said nozzle having ports connecting the interior thereof with said annular chamber, a piston valve in said nozzle for opening and closing said ports, and a float connected with. said piston valve.

9. A regulating device comprising a tank provided with a steam inlet, and a water inlet, a nozzle depending into said tank, said nozzle having an enlarged bore in its upper portion, a steam outlet connection communicating with enlarged bore, said nozzle provided interiorly with an upwardly extending member projecting into said en larged bore and having ports connecting the latter with the interior of said tubular memher, a cap closing the upper end of said tubular member, a piston valve in said nozzle to open and close said ports, and a float connected with said piston valve.

10. The combination of a boiler, a regulator tank, water connections between the boiler and tank, a steam valve, a float in the regulator tank and connected with said valve, and a perforated device connected with said float and adapted to be immersed 1n the water in the tank.

11.. The combination of a boiler, a regula tor tank, water connections between the tank and the boiler, a steam valve, a float inthe regulator tank and connected with said valve, and a perforated device connected with said. float and disposed below the ports of the water connections.

l2. The combination of a boiler, a regulator tank, water connections between the boiler and tank, a steam valve, a float in the regulator tank and connected with. said valve, a rod depending from said float, a perforated device on said rod, and means whereby the size of the perforations in said device may be adjusted.

13. The combination of a boiler, a regulator tank, water connections between the boiler and tank, a steam'valve, a float in the regulator tank and connected with said valve, a rod depending from said float, and

two perforated disks supported by said depending rod and relatively movable to adjust the size of water passages afforded by the perforations.

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscrib- 

